Birds

Though most readers are familiar with Kevin Henkes through his books featuring mice, he also has plenty of titles that venture outside the realm of adorable mice. With Birds, he works with Laura Dronzek, who gives this book its lovely illustrations. The little winged creatures we all know and love are the main feature of this title. They have so many different shapes, dozens and dozens of different colors, and they can be huge or very, very small. There are so many different types, it can be impossible to see all of them. But not only that, birds are magical and they can appear no matter where you look. If you listen carefully, you are sure to hear a song being warbled by one somewhere in a tree or a bush, or even on top of a building. Laura Dronzek paints a wonderful menagerie of beautiful birdies for kids. Each one has a thick outline and colored in with bold, rich color. Occasionally imagination takes flight, and other objects become the winged creatures, such as clouds. Each page is full of color that kids will love to look at and find the birds nestled in trees as well as many other unique ideas. Kevin Henkes offers up a children’s book that appeals to kids’ imaginations, bringing up only thoughts that kids might consider, such as what the sky would

look like if tail feathers made marks on it, followed up by Dronzek’s illustrations. He uses simple text to deliver the ideas without a lot of fuss or difficult wording. Because this book is intended for infants and preschoolers, it gives them a chance to be read to as well as practice reading with some of the simpler words. It is a simple, peaceful book that can be read at anytime, anywhere. It can be particularly fun to read in springtime when all the birds are emerging from the cold of winter and are excited to sing again. It is the type of book that parents might consider reading outside with children, so they can get the full effect; birds on the pages, and more in the trees and flying through the skies.